Photography by Bob Montanaro

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The Great American Eclipse of 2017

Views of the solar eclipse of 21 August 2017 as seen from the pollinator garden at Audubon House at the Oslo Riverfront Conservation Area. While totality swept across the continental United States, thrilling millions, down low on peninsular Florida the Moon only eked out a partial eclipse. While totality may have eluded us, this example of heavenly bodies moving stately through their paths in the cosmic clockwork was spectacular in its own right. The Moon made first contact with the Sun at 1:23 p.m., building up to the Moon’s maximum coverage of 85% of the Sun at around 2:54. The eclipse ended with the Moon moving off the face of the Sun at approximately 4:17. Notice the fair number of sunspots on the disc of the Sun and how the Moon covers and uncovers them in its passage.
The Moon is gone. The eclipse is over.
These final two images are shadows from the overhanging oak trees. Note how the sunlight coming through the leaves produces myriad crescents, which are a natural projection of the crescent Sun at maximum coverage.